If you want to be my number one, tell me your future plans.

[raybear]

I currently have 666 messages in my e-mail inbox. Me and the devil, baby. And I said hello Satan, I believe it's time to go.

But it's not a Robert Johnson day, it's a Horace Andy day. Well, it's just a reggae day but that's the only CD I have on tap at the office, so it's been repeated once or twice. I tried not to torture the nice intern behind me who may or may not be listening.

I did radio in college, interning with a rock show at 2 am on Thursday nights and a folk show on Sunday mornings. The producer was one of those childish adults, those people I seem to encounter a lot who haven't quite been able to cope with being a grown up. She agitated me a lot, and sometimes the DJ who's Continental Drift show followed us would listen patiently to my gripings. We had a small bond over being from Atlanta, even though she went to Lovejoy and I went to a school far away that maybe scared her for no apparent reason. But she would say, "now it's time to sit back and chill because that's what reggae music is about." And for the first time I actually listened to the music and learned a bit of history and artists and styles.

Six years later I'm not too much better off in surrounding myself with non-childish adults. Nor am I as educated about reggae as I'd like. I intend to fix both. Here's where I'll start.



various top lists from reggaesource.com

Horace Andy - In the Light/In the Light Dub (Blood and Fire)
Anthony B - So Many Things (VP)
Stanley Beckford and the Starlights - Soldering (Heartbeat)
Dennis Brown - Love and Hate: The Best of Dennis Brown (VP)
Half Pint - Half Pint (VP)
Mad Professor - It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Professor (Ariwa)
Morgan Heritage - One Calling (VP)
Scientist - Scientist Rids the World of the Curse of the Evil Vampires (Greensleeves)
Various - Easy Star Volume One (Easy Star)
Yabby You - One Love, One Heart (Shanachie)

Dennis Brown - Words of Wisdom
Abyssinians - Satta Massagana
Heptones - On Top
Marcia Griffiths - Naturally
Gregory Isaacs - Mr Isaacs
Culture - Two Sevens Clash
Burning Spear - Marcus Garvey
Mighty Diamonds - Right Time
Paragons - On the Beach
U Roy - Version Galore
Sugar Minott - Showcase
Jacob Miller & Inner Circle - Greatest Hits
Lone Ranger - M16
Lee Perry & King Tubby - Blackboard Jungle Dub
Bob Andy - Songbook
Leroy Sibbles - On Top

Bunny Wailer - Blackheart Man
Eek A Mouse - Wa-do-Dem
Culture - 2 Sevens Clash and Livity 98
Gregory Isaacs - My Number One and Best of I & II
Bob Marley & the Wailers - any on Tuff Gong
Burning Spear - Reggae Greats
Peter Tosh - Legalize It
Israel Vibration - Same Song
Toots & the Maytals - Time Tough - The Anthology
Alpha Blondy - Jerusalem and Apartheid is Nazism
Dennis Brown - Love and Hate
Steel Pulse - True Democracy




from Mojo:
Augustus Pablo ? East Of The River Nile
Augustus Pablo ? King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown
Barrington Levy ? Shaolin Temple
Beenie Man ? Art And Life
Big Youth ? Screaming Target
Bim Sherman ? Miracle
Black Uhuru ? Showcase
Bob Andy ? Bob Andy?s Songbook
Buju Banton ? ?Till Shiloh
Burning Spear ? Marcus Gravy
Burning Spear ? Studio One Presents?
Culture ? Two Sevens Clash
Dennis Brown ? Wolves And Leopards
Dillinger ? CB200
Dr Alimantado ? Best Dressed Chicken In Town
Dub Syndicate ? Tunes From The Missing Channel
Garnett Slick ? It?s Growing
Gregory Isaacs ? Extra Classic
Gregory Isaacs ? Night Nurse
Horace Andy ? Skylarking
Jackie Mittoo ? Macka Fat
Joe Gibbs ? African Dub All-Mighty Chapter 3
Johnny Osborne ? Truths And Rights
Ken Booth ? Mr Rock Steady
Lady Saw ? Passion
Luciano ? Messenger
Marcia Griffiths ? Naturally
Max Romeo And The Upsetters ? War Ina Babylon
Phyllis Dillon ? Midnight Confessions
Prince Buster ? Fabulous Greatest Hits
Rico ? Man From Wareika
Roland Alphonso ? King Of Sax
Scientist ? Scientist Meets Space Invaders
Sizzla ? Black Woman And Child
T.O.K. ? My Crew, My Dawgs
Tapper Zukie ? Mpla
The Abyssinians ? Forward On To Zion
The Congos ? Heart Of The Congos
The Gladiators ? Trenchtown Mix Up
The Heptones ? On Top
The Maytels ? Never Grow Old
The Mighty Diamonds ? Right Time
The Paragons ? On The Beach
The Skatalites ? Ska Boo-Da-Ba
The Upsetters ? Return Of Django
Toots And The Maytels ? Funky Kingston
Upsetters ? Blackboard Jungle Dub
U-Roy ? Version Galore
Yabby You ? King Tubby?s Prophesy Of Dub
Yellowman ? Mister Yellowman

What reggae do you recommend?

Comments

personally....

[noisyspoon.livejournal.com]

i love the Dub genre the best... but that's just me... chilled out and trippy.

some suggestions:



and of course, the dub man himself... Lee Scratch Perry:

this is tremendous:



as is:



beware with Perry stuff... not only have people put out albums under his name, but he's a pretty prolific dude, and well, some of his stuff is not so good.

Coming from the resident Jamaican herself.....

[kisha.livejournal.com]

Buju Bantan: nah..homophobic asshole.

Skatallites: YES. First wave ska is the only ska.
Hepcats (not on your list i don't think): 3rd Wave ska, which sounds 1st/2nd wave. Really good.
Mr. Marley: duh. hehehe
Toots and the Maytals: More awesome ass 1st wave ska. Oh yes.
Yellowman and Third World are pretty decent.

Re: Coming from the resident Jamaican herself.....

[raybear.livejournal.com]

it's strange that Marley isn't on their lists -- i guess he's too obvious? I love that Bob, and he's the one guy who's music I know pretty well. along with Horace Andy. do you listen to Massive Attack? you know that guy with the high falsetto on their album Mezzanine? that's him! i love his old and new stuff.

Re: personally....

[raybear.livejournal.com]

thanks for the tips and the pretty pictures. esp. the part about Perry. I have some random stuff of his, but he's a prolific mofo. It's good to have help on finding what's better.

[virtex23.livejournal.com]

pato banton--love his music.